LEAH SHARIBU : HOW FAR SO FAR?
The celebration of the new year has taken over everywhere and the Nigeria mood seems to be joyous. Loud speakers blaring in religious places , kids running happily across the streets and elders chatting happily in loud voices about the new year. All are happy and in the mood of celebration. Alas! Someone somewhere has been forgotten in the course of the festivity!
The forgotten creature is none other than Leah Sharibu, who has been held in captivity by boko haram insurgents since February 19,2018 after the insurgents laid siege on Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi ,Yobe State in northern Nigeria.
She was the only unlucky one amongst the 110 female students kidnapped by the insurgents. Others were released, however "our" Leah wasn't released with the insurgents claiming she refused to renounce her christian faith;a condition given by the insurgents for her release but she has reportedly remained recalcitrant to this unholy and illegal demand. An heroic act of bravery and steadfastness!
Her continued stay in captivity is downplaying the effectiveness of the government in ensuring the security of lives of Nigerians under this present dispensation. While it is worthy of note that terrorism is not a child which just sprang up in Nigeria some minutes ago or hours ago, it is commendable that the federal government has been unable to annihilate the ugly monster and it's dangerous looking head which has continued to mouth up a lot of budgetary allocations despite the incapability of our military to deal with it.
The federal government has issued several statements countless times assuredly stating the resolve to ensure the release of Leah Sharibu, however this has remained mere news than actions as nothing can be seen to have resulted from the various unweighted statements from the presidential aides or the president himself.
A victim of faith, you can call her, however this would not stop the questions in the hearts of many Nigerians. Is the president indisposed to her plight because she's of the 'other' religion? Are our service chiefs intentionally letting her remain in captivity?, this and many other questions have raged on across the "street parliaments" and this doesn't only put the nation in a fix but also creates an allusion that the government is only concerned when many casualties are involved rather than go after the one 'lost sheep'.
Boko haram had declared while killing some other hostages that the infidels will be kept as slave and we are expected to rejoice over this, laugh over cups of beer? or the nation should put on its sober cloak that a citizen like everyone will be subjected to slavery, and continued suffering just because she held on to her faith and refused to bulge.
Leah Sharibu needs intervention, needs protection, saving but our government is not caring anymore! What happens when this happens again? Who's next? She's not the daughter of an influential politician? She's the child of a poor citizen? Are these why the government are not caring about one of the nation's future? A young girl whose life and destiny looks bright caught up in the hands of dreadful-looking extremists and we don't want to care?
In a viral audio by the insurgents, Leah Sharibu had pleaded with the federal government to save her life. A voice laden with mercy and pleadings one could deduced but the president appears not to have listened to the cries of the young fellow from the 'wilderness of terrorism' whence the cry for salvage come from.
A "precious daughter" of the nation has been left in the hands of the dogs because if the words of the minister of information alhaji Lai Mohammed is anything to go. When he said that "...we do not look as Leah Sharibu either as a Christian or Moslem but as a precious daughter of the country", then it is sardonic, disheartening, and embarrassing that this precious daughter's life is at stake 10months after with her whereabouts and condition unknown and the nation's weather remains calm and cool.
It is yet another year and we are celebrating while a sister, a brother, and a citizen remains in bondage, slavery and terror chains with the fear of execution, seeing the new year as another added hours to her captivity rather than the felicitating with family and friends.
The rather sardonic and more debilitating thing is that our politicians and political parties in Nigeria are just mere interest jobbers who would only protest against issues not alluding to the increase of their pockets.
In saner countries where the totality of the citizens take issues seriously, there would have been wild protests across the country by politicians and so called statesmen and pressures would have been mounted on the federal government to ensure her release but nay to to the bewilderment at the insensitivity of our politicians as campaigns have continued in earnest and an important issue left to rot, sadly humorous that 2019 general elections have become more important!
It is as a matter of immediate alacrity ,expedient that the federal government through the military and other relevant authorities initiate the release of our precious daughter as we start the new year.
The federal government should stand up to its responsibility and rescue Leah Sharibu from the claws of this Wild panthers and restore the confidence of the people in the Nigeria system.
Adeagbo Emmanuel (Don Manuel) is a public affairs analyst and social commentator.
08142701827
The forgotten creature is none other than Leah Sharibu, who has been held in captivity by boko haram insurgents since February 19,2018 after the insurgents laid siege on Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi ,Yobe State in northern Nigeria.
She was the only unlucky one amongst the 110 female students kidnapped by the insurgents. Others were released, however "our" Leah wasn't released with the insurgents claiming she refused to renounce her christian faith;a condition given by the insurgents for her release but she has reportedly remained recalcitrant to this unholy and illegal demand. An heroic act of bravery and steadfastness!
Her continued stay in captivity is downplaying the effectiveness of the government in ensuring the security of lives of Nigerians under this present dispensation. While it is worthy of note that terrorism is not a child which just sprang up in Nigeria some minutes ago or hours ago, it is commendable that the federal government has been unable to annihilate the ugly monster and it's dangerous looking head which has continued to mouth up a lot of budgetary allocations despite the incapability of our military to deal with it.
The federal government has issued several statements countless times assuredly stating the resolve to ensure the release of Leah Sharibu, however this has remained mere news than actions as nothing can be seen to have resulted from the various unweighted statements from the presidential aides or the president himself.
A victim of faith, you can call her, however this would not stop the questions in the hearts of many Nigerians. Is the president indisposed to her plight because she's of the 'other' religion? Are our service chiefs intentionally letting her remain in captivity?, this and many other questions have raged on across the "street parliaments" and this doesn't only put the nation in a fix but also creates an allusion that the government is only concerned when many casualties are involved rather than go after the one 'lost sheep'.
Boko haram had declared while killing some other hostages that the infidels will be kept as slave and we are expected to rejoice over this, laugh over cups of beer? or the nation should put on its sober cloak that a citizen like everyone will be subjected to slavery, and continued suffering just because she held on to her faith and refused to bulge.
Leah Sharibu needs intervention, needs protection, saving but our government is not caring anymore! What happens when this happens again? Who's next? She's not the daughter of an influential politician? She's the child of a poor citizen? Are these why the government are not caring about one of the nation's future? A young girl whose life and destiny looks bright caught up in the hands of dreadful-looking extremists and we don't want to care?
In a viral audio by the insurgents, Leah Sharibu had pleaded with the federal government to save her life. A voice laden with mercy and pleadings one could deduced but the president appears not to have listened to the cries of the young fellow from the 'wilderness of terrorism' whence the cry for salvage come from.
A "precious daughter" of the nation has been left in the hands of the dogs because if the words of the minister of information alhaji Lai Mohammed is anything to go. When he said that "...we do not look as Leah Sharibu either as a Christian or Moslem but as a precious daughter of the country", then it is sardonic, disheartening, and embarrassing that this precious daughter's life is at stake 10months after with her whereabouts and condition unknown and the nation's weather remains calm and cool.
It is yet another year and we are celebrating while a sister, a brother, and a citizen remains in bondage, slavery and terror chains with the fear of execution, seeing the new year as another added hours to her captivity rather than the felicitating with family and friends.
The rather sardonic and more debilitating thing is that our politicians and political parties in Nigeria are just mere interest jobbers who would only protest against issues not alluding to the increase of their pockets.
In saner countries where the totality of the citizens take issues seriously, there would have been wild protests across the country by politicians and so called statesmen and pressures would have been mounted on the federal government to ensure her release but nay to to the bewilderment at the insensitivity of our politicians as campaigns have continued in earnest and an important issue left to rot, sadly humorous that 2019 general elections have become more important!
It is as a matter of immediate alacrity ,expedient that the federal government through the military and other relevant authorities initiate the release of our precious daughter as we start the new year.
The federal government should stand up to its responsibility and rescue Leah Sharibu from the claws of this Wild panthers and restore the confidence of the people in the Nigeria system.
Adeagbo Emmanuel (Don Manuel) is a public affairs analyst and social commentator.
08142701827
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